Hi folks, I know this is a frequent subject, but I haven't been able to get all the answers in one spot, so I thought I'd submit this again to make sure that I've got all the answers before surgery starts. My lovely 916, El Squalo Rosso, otherwise known as Iron Mike, recently decided it only wanted to stay in second gear. This not being practical, I attempted to poke at it, pulled the right side cover off to expose the external shift mechanism, saw that the tension spring on the gear selector arm was broken, made up a new spring and buttoned it back up, no joy. Farted around for several more weeks trying to get something going with no luck. Got depressed cause I really didn't want to open the engine up and have to wait the likely year it would take for me to pull the engine to little pieces, find something and hopefully properly reassemble. So... I got a good deal on a 996 engine, and before buying I scurried through the forums and it looked like it was a doable thing, but the no shit list of what had to happen to make it work was still not fully formed in my mind. Being the decisive type I bought the damn thing and now am confronted with the reality. So here is my understanding of what I need to do. 1. Need a new 3 wire Regulator rectifier - done 2 I can use the 916 throttle bodies directly - can do that 3. to improve performance, I should get a 996 chip from Ferraci or somebody to replace my existing Arrow chip - this begs the question as to whether it will work. I have a '98 916, Strada I think, I'm not sure what ECU that is, but would a 996 chip work in this thing. ?? 4. There's at least one pickup that came with the 996 that has a different wire configuration that what was in the 916, since I'm using the 916 harness, I assume that I will move the pickup from the 916 to the 996. Haven't looked through the shop guide with enough determination to figure out which one it is at this point. I think that's all I was able to glean from the internet and other shade tree scholars. The question is, is this it? Any additional facts, opinions or otherwise would be greatly appreciated. It's still warm enough to ride here, gotta get going!! Thanks for the help, Jack
iv done this twice before, ended up with no ignition light on both bikes and no neutral light on one, used the correct throttle bodies on both, i'm sure you can use the the 916 bodies and middle loom with a 916 chip as opposed to twin injectors and 996 chip
didn't the 916 strada have twin crank sensors like the later 996sps engine?? personally if it was me I would have had the 916 engine rebuilt and tuned to 955cc
Thought about it, but given the fact that I was being quoted the price I paid for the engine just to have the valves set, it seemed like a rebuild done by anyone other than me was gonna be a lot o' coin.
224stu, I can get the throttle body from the 996 for $250, would it be worth getting that and using a 996 chip? would it work with my ECU? I've heard less than flattering things about the dual injector 996 throttle bodies.
Well firstly you say the bikes a strada ?? And a 1998 correct me if I’m wrong some body but were’nt strada’s 93/94 ?? The reason I query this is the strada should be twin injector per cylinder with a P8 ECU A normal 98 bip or mono should b single injector with 16-M ECU I’m guessing yours is a 16-M single injector, If so I’d run your throttle bodies with the same ECU and chip and see how it runs ,, you made need a specific EPROM but the bike will run more than fine for normal use , you’ll definitely need a new regulator as 996 runs 3 phase and that is different to 916, it’s different loom middle and front. 21pin as opposed to 19pin on 916,not really sure if you can use the 916 loom with some alterations (I doubt it tho)
Ok, back in town. First admission, I don't really know what model the bike is, in it's current configuration it's set up as a single seat, but not being knowledgeable about 916 model history, I assume that it currently qualifies it as a 1998 monoposto? The other thing that was found is that the original engine does not have the second pickup, and the 996 I just got doesn't either, so no special engines here. So as it now stands, I assume that means I've got a 1.6M ECU, which along with the single injector throttles, should hopefully work out with the 996 that I want to install. As I mentioned I have an Arrow chip in the bike now, but for good measure I grabbed an Ultimap chip off of ebay for a 916/1.6M Am I at least heading in the right direction with this thinking?
Yes indeed, you're on the right track with your plans. Assuming both engines use/used the same ecu.... Fortunately, if you're still unsure you'll be able to tell what ecu you have quite easily. The P8 is large, and has a solid top. The 1.6M is smaller, and has a circular opening, covered with a foil sticker on top. FWIW, the 916 Strada was discontinued at the end of 1994 in nearly every world market and replaced with the Biposto... with the one exception being the USA. Strada sales continued stateside for the rest of the model's run. These were all P8-equipped bikes. (In 1998 Ducati had a change of heart and reintroduced the Strada to most other markets again before the 996 was released in '99.) Also, only the 996SPS came with a P8, all other 996's were fitted with the 1.6M...
